Costa News Spain Breaking News | English News in Spain.
On Tuesday evening, 24th June, a dramatic fire broke out on a supply ship in the Bay of Algeciras. This prompted a rapid rescue and activation of the emergency maritime protocols. The vessel’s seven crew members, Ceutamar 5After abandoning the ship, thick black smoke rose in the sky.
The fire started just after 5:30pm near Algeciras. It engulfed this small vessel as it serviced a containership anchored. The vessel was ablaze and thick smoke could be seen from Los Barrios and the coast.
The crew, mostly made up of divers, jumped in the sea to escape from the fire. They were quickly rescued by teams from Spain’s maritime rescue agency, Salvamento Marítimo, and transferred to safety. Two individuals were treated for mild smoke-inhalation on the spot, but didn’t require hospitalisation. The emergency services responded quickly, activating both the Port of Algeciras Self-Protection Plan (Level 2) and the Maritime Interior Plan in response to fears of a fuel spill. Multiple tugboats, along with Salvamento Marítimo vessels and firefighting units from the Port Authority, were deployed to battle the flames and cool the ship’s superstructure.
After inspections by environmental officials, it was fortunately found that there had been no marine pollution. Later, the damaged vessel was towed back to port for cooling and further assessment.
You can also find out more about the following: Ceutamar 5, operated by Marítima Velum, is a locally based support vessel often used in underwater inspection and maintenance operations. Authorities from the Guardia Civil’s Policía Judicial unit and the Port Authority have launched an investigation into the cause of the fire, which remains unknown at this moment in time.
An official at the port said, “This could’ve ended very differently.” A major disaster was avoided thanks to our emergency teams’ professionalism and quick response.
Despite significant delays, the port’s operations resumed.
